Carter Bundy, a Richmond, Va., analyst with Stifel Nicolaus & Co. of St. Louis, Mo., said Pinnacle has improved the quality of its loans, its margins and the mix of deposits it takes to fuel lending that leveled off in the bad times.

“The trend line does not appear to be reversing course,” Bundy said.

Still, the fragile economic recovery has banks hoping — but never really knowing — whether they’ve discharged enough loans that could sour. In Pinnacle’s case, some local observers that acknowledge the bank’s general recovery still suspect more trouble remains on its books.

But Turner is “highly confident” Pinnacle has recognized its problems. While he’s careful to tout the bank’s top priorities of shedding bad loans and building earnings capacity, Turner also is toughening talk of bruising competitors he again sees as vulnerable in a turbulent market.

Still, market leaders like Regions Bank of Birmingham, Ala., and SunTrust Bank of Atlanta, Ga., also have worked to regain their footing and say they’re aggressive on business banking. And notable competitors with a smaller market share — think U.S. Bank of Minneapolis — also remain. Pinnacle is No. 4 locally, with $3.6 billion in deposits.

Pinnacle also still has to pay back the $95 million in Troubled Asset Relief Program money, and it has become less likely it will do so soon by swapping for cheaper federal money as restrictions tighten. Turner thinks Pinnacle can pay off TARP through current cash, earnings and patience, a feat some doubt because other banks have had to raise capital.

It also remains the subject of merger and acquisition buzz. Being bought is still something Turner bats down while saying the bank will always consider what’s best for shareholders — including, in the future, acquisitions of its own. For now, the objective remains to continue building the “big, high-profit bank” founders envisioned more than 10 years ago, he said.

Industries:

Comments

If you are commenting using a Facebook account, your profile information may be displayed with your comment depending on your privacy settings. By leaving the 'Post to Facebook' box selected, your comment will be published to your Facebook profile in addition to the space below.